Predicting the Existence of Dyslexia in Children Using fMRI

Dyslexia is a learning disorder characterized by difficulties with accurate or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and decoding abilities. Current diagnosis of dyslexia lacks objective criteria, which can decrease treatment efficacy. Diagnosis relies on a discrepancy between reading ability and intelligence, a measure which can be unreliable, and has been criticized for its poor validity.

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a fairly new and unique tool that enables widespread, noninvasive investigation of brain functions. A growing body of studies are exploring the use of resting state fMRI techniques in examining possible functional disconnectivity effects in neurologic and psychiatric brain disorders, including Alzheimer's disease, depression, dementia and schizophrenia. Functional connectivity is defined as the temporal dependency of neuronal activation patterns of anatomically separated brain regions. Therefore, functional connectivity studies have the potential to characterize and classify brain disorders such as dyslexia, too.